Epilogue
EPILOGUE
HARPER
H aven had always been an exceptionally happy child. Her first smile came roughly two minutes after birth. She’d been grinning and laughing and cracking jokes ever since.
And Harper had never seen her daughter look happier than she did right now.
Haven and Roan had opted for an incredibly simple, casual wedding on Section 8 grounds. The bride had worn wildflowers in her loose, flowing hair and a simple A-line, pale pink, tulle gown that she’d dubbed boho hippie chic. The groom wore a charcoal Tom Ford suit Haven had lucked into at a thrift shop in town for half price.
Semi-charmed, indeed. That kind of find qualified her for fully charmed.
The ceremony had taken place outside just after sundown in the Section 8 gardens, by the light of a perfectly starry sky, a nearly full moon, and roughly ten million tea lights that had taken hours to place. The vows were a mix of traditional (minus the whole “obey” thing, because who were they kidding?) and ones the couple wrote themselves, and when all was said and done, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
Except maybe Seven. But Harper had never seen Seven cry. For all she knew, her sister-in-law might not even have tear ducts.
But now, as she sat at one of the tables in the elegantly appointed reception tent, stomach full of filet and shrimp, with her aching feet up on a chair (high heels sucked but her Chucks wouldn’t have looked right with her lacy, emerald-green mother-of-the-bride dress), watching the festivities, she couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic.
Her baby was all grown up. A married woman. When the hell did that happen?
In fact, was everyone in her life all happy and settled now? Surely after all the drama they’d faced over the years, that wasn’t possible. But looking at all her loved ones in attendance tonight, it sure seemed true.
Hunter and Mischa were signing animatedly with Lane and Lucien about the couple’s recent honeymoon in Hawaii. And Australia. And Italy. And Belize. Turned out you could afford to visit way more places when you married an angel who could teleport you wherever you wanted to go versus relying on airplanes and such. Must be nice. Harper wasn’t bitter about it, though. After all they’d been through, they deserved it. And seeing the once commitment-phobic Mischa happy with the family she’d built never failed to warm Harper’s heart.
Seven, who looked like a supermodel in her red sheath dress (wearing it with Doc Martins was a choice Harper didn’t understand, but could respect), was having a very serious-looking conversation with Levi, who was gazing at her like she was offering up the secrets of the universe. Lucas just shook his head fondly as he took in whatever his wife was saying. If Harper had to guess, she’d say Seven was teaching Levi some new and creative way to disable a man/vampire/shifter/demon.
Her suspicions were confirmed when Seven’s hand shot out, demonstrating a very violent, grabbing and twisting technique on an imaginary assailant. The wince Levi and Lucas shared told her exactly which body part she’d suggested they grab and twist. Ahem.
Marina was sitting at another table with her feet in Quinn’s lap. She was about eight months pregnant with their second child. It had been one of those surprise “oops” babies that sometimes happen later in life. In fact, Marina thought she was going into menopause when she missed her period, only to find out she was having another baby.
Harper couldn’t tell if it was joy or hot flashes that had given her sister’s face such a rosy glow, but she looked fantastic, nonetheless. And Quinn seemed more than content to gaze at his wife lovingly while he rubbed her swollen ankles. Now that was a man in love.
Nikolai and Violet were on the dance floor, and if they’d been at a middle school dance, they would’ve been given detention for not leaving space for Jesus between them. He leaned down to whisper something in her ear, and given the blush that instantly lit up her cheeks, Harper would say it wasn’t anything that could be shared in polite company.
Marina and Quinn’s daughter, Everly, and Nikolai and Violet’s daughter, Annika, were braiding flowers into each other’s hair, looking all kinds of adorable. Soon, they’d be teenagers, which just made Harper feel old as dirt.
Addy and Gabriel, who’d been maid of honor and best man in the ceremony, were making out in the corner like a couple of horny teens at prom, and Benny was performing card tricks for a table full of ooh-ing and ah-ing little kids to distract them from the fact that dessert hadn’t been served yet.
Her brother, Michael, and his beauty-queen vampire wife couldn’t make it back in time from her show in Argentina to attend the wedding, but they’d be in town the following week to catch everyone up on their adventures abroad.
Riddick set a glass of champagne down in front of her and took a seat at her side. “I think your mother is flirting with Ted.”
She followed his gaze to where her mother was giggling like a schoolgirl at something Ted had just said to her. “Definitely. After she did his preemployment interview, she told me he was a ‘fine specimen of manhood’.”
Riddick snorted. “Yeah. We all saw what a fine specimen he was. I’m glad Addy was able to help him control his powers enough that he can finally wear pants.”
“With or without pants, he’s the best call center employee we’ve ever had. Even that horrid old Karen likes him.”
“Well, if Tina plays her cards right, maybe Ted can be more than your employee. Maybe he’ll be your stepdad,” he teased.
Harper shrugged. “Better than my real dad. And I know you were kidding, but they have a dinner date next Friday. She’s cooking for him. Asked for my dating advice and everything.”
“What did you tell her?”
“I told her to buy lube. Like you said, we all saw what he was packing. No way is that happening without lots and lots of lube.”
Riddick grimaced. “I’d like to change the subject now.”
She grinned at him. “Understood.” She looked back out over the room before asking, “Did you ever think we’d be here?”
“Here as a location, or as a place in life?”
“Either. But especially the latter.”
He eased a wayward curl off her forehead, letting his fingertips linger on her skin. How the hell had they been married for so long and he still managed to give her shivers when he touched her? “Sunshine, I used to think I’d be dead by thirty. Being with you has always felt like a dream to me. None of this would’ve happened without you.”
“Without us ,” she corrected.
“Without us,” he agreed quietly. “Not bad for a happily ever after, huh?”
She grabbed his hand and let out a satisfied sigh. “Not bad at all.”
Keep reading for samples of Caped and Dangerous (if you love Harper, you’ll ADORE Greer), and Monster Match (because everyone needs a monster with a giant, um, heart in their lives).